The trend has largely been driven by non-resource sectors, the president has said The Russian economy is growing more quickly than those of other major global powers and is doing so without a reliance on oil and gas, President Vladimir Putin said on Friday.

The new settlement mechanism will allow countries to bypass Western financial messenger SWIFT, Anton Siluanov has said BRICS finance ministers are currently examining the possibility of launching a common blockchain-based system of financial settlements that could be used in place of the Western-dominated financial messaging system SWIFT, Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov said on Friday.

Antonio Guterres has warned that the risk of a catastrophic conflict is at the highest level since the USSR collapsed Technological advances and escalating geopolitical tensions are imperiling the global population with the highest risk of a nuclear conflict since the Soviet Union broke up in 1991, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has warned.